Access control at special events: A major security consideration

Controlling attendance has proven to be a key to successfully managing an event, and it is definitely top of mind this month with the largest event of architecture and design in the Americas, CASA COR® having taken place in São Paulo, Brazil.

At the beginning of the event, CASA COR's 3,500 VIP guests received an iCLASS card to access the show (printed on our FARGO® HDP5000 printer that enables high definition printing and security). VIP guests then provide a fingerprint using bioCLASS readers that immediately transferred the data to the card. During this enrollment process, the fingerprint template is stored ONLY on the card - this means that it is never transmitted to an external host. This was an important point for CASA COR since it translated into increased security, faster throughput (managing templates using software would slow down the process of getting in the event), easier system management, and reduced concerns over individual privacy.

The use of biometrics in the card reader also ensured that the VIP card data collected was not transferable, which meant that the event organizers had greater control of who attended and how many times, enabling more effective management since the event spanned the entire month of July.

CASA COR's use Genuine HID solutions to increase security and their ability to control event attendance is a great example of the many ways our technology is effectively deployed across a range of use cases worldwide. And at events moving forward, it's now possible that your show badge and credential could also be made available on your phone with HID Global solutions that enable the use of digital credentials on NFC-enabled smartphones for access control and other applications. I'll be curious to see how our next generation access control platform is utilized at major events like these to come.